legacy left a stain on every shirt i ever borrowed
everything i ever gave came with a smell of loving
of keepsakes and keeping safe

legacy is bundled up tight in a little box
high up in a kitchen cabinet
legacy is written on postcards and note cards
the backs of scrap paper and magazines with
notes in the margins
saying this was from an old roommates
grandmother so i'm keeping it forever
saying this was from my closest cousin gone
except for scribbles on a piece of paper
guiding me to make their signature loving that
tasted just right

legacy sits in the living room right next to the front door
decorated with memories and baby pictures
playing beautiful and not-beautiful music every day

legacy answers my calls from another time zone in
the middle of the day
to calm me down, listening to my rambling
legacy tells me about the latest book it read
about hidden how-to guides for bringing home

legacy is hanging on a chain around my neck
engraved into a piece of itself
legacy asked me what my last name was and i said it
was legacy
legacy faded away with an “i miss you already”

legacy left without me
legacy left me with more of me
legacy came and went to make me an
amalgamation of hand-me-downs
that i patchwork into a quilt of my own legacy